Online music subscription service for US$5 a month?

Wouldn’t it be nice if there was an online music service which offered a monthly subscription for only US$5 a month? There may soon be such a service, but it is catching the attention of folks at the U.S. Department of Justice. That’s just a little odd though since the service, called Total Music, is not even out of the concept phase yet.

CNet has reported that Sony BMG Music Entertainment and Universal Music Group have both received letters from the Department of Justice in regards to the potential Total Music service. According to the reports, the service is being courted to the three other major labels by Doug Morris, Universal Music CEO, and would be structured so that in addition to the record labels, hardware manufacturers and wireless service providers would share the cost of such a low subscription fee.

It’s WAAY too early to see if Total Music even makes it off the ground to even worry about it. Even if the U.S. Department of Justice approves such a service you have to wonder if hardware manufacturers and wireless service providers would “jump on board” to make such a low cost monthly subscription fee work. I would assume the biggest concern the Department of Justice currently has is the monopoly which could result from the four big record companies starting their own online music service.